Revelation Space

People who bought this also bought...

House of Suns

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 18 hrs and 17 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
617

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
430

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
429

Six million years ago, at the very dawn of the starfaring era, Abigail Gentian fractured herself into a thousand male and female clones: the shatterlings. Sent out into the galaxy, these shatterlings have stood aloof as they document the rise and fall of countless human empires. They meet every 200,000 years to exchange news and memories of their travels with their siblings.

5 out of 5 stars

Reynolds gets better and better

By
Nick
on
01-06-10

Pushing Ice

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 32 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
497

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
328

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
323

2057. Humanity has raised exploiting the solar system to an art form. Bella Lind and the crew of her nuclear-powered ship, the Rockhopper, push ice. They mine comets. And they're good at it. The Rockhopper is nearing the end of its current mission cycle, and everyone is desperate for some much-needed R & R, when startling news arrives from Saturn: Janus, one of Saturn's ice moons, has inexplicably left its natural orbit and is now heading out of the solar system at high speed.

4 out of 5 stars

Great story, annoying main characters..

By
Martin
on
26-04-12

The Prefect

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 41 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
541

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
380

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
379

Tom Dreyfus is a Prefect, a law enforcement officer with the Panoply. His beat is the multifaceted utopian society of the Glitter Band, that vast swirl of space habitats orbiting the planet Yellowstone, the teeming hub of a human interstellar empire spanning many worlds. His current case: investigating a murderous attack against one of the habitats that left 900 people dead, a crime that appalls even a hardened cop like Dreyfus.

4 out of 5 stars

Prefect near perfect

By
Patrick
on
19-09-11

Revenger

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
Clare Corbett

Length: 14 hrs and 38 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
479

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
442

Story

4 out of 5 stars
440

The galaxy has seen great empires rise and fall. Planets have shattered and been remade. Amongst the ruins of alien civilisations, building our own from the rubble, humanity still thrives. And there are vast fortunes to be made, if you know where to find them.... Captain Rackamore and his crew do.

2 out of 5 stars

Oh dear

By
Mr S.
on
12-10-16

Leviathan Wakes

The Expanse, Book 1

By:
James S. A. Corey

Narrated by:
Jefferson Mays

Length: 19 hrs and 9 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,431

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,255

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,257

Humanity has colonized the planets - interstellar travel is still beyond our reach, but the solar system has become a dense network of colonies. But there are tensions - the mineral-rich outer planets resent their dependence on Earth and Mars and the political and military clout they wield over the Belt and beyond. Now, when Captain Jim Holden's ice miner stumbles across a derelict, abandoned ship, he uncovers a secret that threatens to throw the entire system into war.

5 out of 5 stars

Great Work

By
RG
on
24-01-15

Mindstar Rising

The Greg Mandel Trilogy, Book 1

By:
Peter F. Hamilton

Narrated by:
Toby Longworth

Length: 14 hrs and 52 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,134

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
806

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
802

It's the 21st century, and global warming is here to stay, so forget the way your country used to look. And get used to the free market, too – the companies possess all the best hardware, and they're calling the shots now. In a world like this, a man open to any offers can make out just fine. A man like Greg Mandel for instance, who's psi-boosted, wired into the latest sensory equipment, carrying state-of-the-art weaponry – and late of the English Army's Mindstar Battalion.

5 out of 5 stars

Great!

By
Catherine
on
13-12-11

House of Suns

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 18 hrs and 17 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
617

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
430

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
429

Six million years ago, at the very dawn of the starfaring era, Abigail Gentian fractured herself into a thousand male and female clones: the shatterlings. Sent out into the galaxy, these shatterlings have stood aloof as they document the rise and fall of countless human empires. They meet every 200,000 years to exchange news and memories of their travels with their siblings.

5 out of 5 stars

Reynolds gets better and better

By
Nick
on
01-06-10

Pushing Ice

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 32 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
497

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
328

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
323

2057. Humanity has raised exploiting the solar system to an art form. Bella Lind and the crew of her nuclear-powered ship, the Rockhopper, push ice. They mine comets. And they're good at it. The Rockhopper is nearing the end of its current mission cycle, and everyone is desperate for some much-needed R & R, when startling news arrives from Saturn: Janus, one of Saturn's ice moons, has inexplicably left its natural orbit and is now heading out of the solar system at high speed.

4 out of 5 stars

Great story, annoying main characters..

By
Martin
on
26-04-12

The Prefect

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 41 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
541

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
380

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
379

Tom Dreyfus is a Prefect, a law enforcement officer with the Panoply. His beat is the multifaceted utopian society of the Glitter Band, that vast swirl of space habitats orbiting the planet Yellowstone, the teeming hub of a human interstellar empire spanning many worlds. His current case: investigating a murderous attack against one of the habitats that left 900 people dead, a crime that appalls even a hardened cop like Dreyfus.

4 out of 5 stars

Prefect near perfect

By
Patrick
on
19-09-11

Revenger

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
Clare Corbett

Length: 14 hrs and 38 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
479

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
442

Story

4 out of 5 stars
440

The galaxy has seen great empires rise and fall. Planets have shattered and been remade. Amongst the ruins of alien civilisations, building our own from the rubble, humanity still thrives. And there are vast fortunes to be made, if you know where to find them.... Captain Rackamore and his crew do.

2 out of 5 stars

Oh dear

By
Mr S.
on
12-10-16

Leviathan Wakes

The Expanse, Book 1

By:
James S. A. Corey

Narrated by:
Jefferson Mays

Length: 19 hrs and 9 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,431

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,255

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,257

Humanity has colonized the planets - interstellar travel is still beyond our reach, but the solar system has become a dense network of colonies. But there are tensions - the mineral-rich outer planets resent their dependence on Earth and Mars and the political and military clout they wield over the Belt and beyond. Now, when Captain Jim Holden's ice miner stumbles across a derelict, abandoned ship, he uncovers a secret that threatens to throw the entire system into war.

5 out of 5 stars

Great Work

By
RG
on
24-01-15

Mindstar Rising

The Greg Mandel Trilogy, Book 1

By:
Peter F. Hamilton

Narrated by:
Toby Longworth

Length: 14 hrs and 52 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,134

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
806

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
802

It's the 21st century, and global warming is here to stay, so forget the way your country used to look. And get used to the free market, too – the companies possess all the best hardware, and they're calling the shots now. In a world like this, a man open to any offers can make out just fine. A man like Greg Mandel for instance, who's psi-boosted, wired into the latest sensory equipment, carrying state-of-the-art weaponry – and late of the English Army's Mindstar Battalion.

5 out of 5 stars

Great!

By
Catherine
on
13-12-11

Hyperion

By:
Dan Simmons

Narrated by:
Marc Vietor,
Allyson Johnson,
Kevin Pariseau,
and others

Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,797

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,572

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,569

On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.

5 out of 5 stars

Inspired Sci-fi

By
Peter
on
02-12-09

Ringworld

By:
Larry Niven

Narrated by:
Tom Parker

Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
619

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
513

Story

4 out of 5 stars
513

Welcome to Ringworld, an intermediate step between Dyson Spheres and planets. The gravitational force created by a rotation on its axis of 770 miles per second means no need for a roof. Walls 1,000 miles high at each rim will let in the sun and prevent much air from escaping. Larry Niven's novel
Ringworld is the winner of the 1970 Hugo Award for Best Novel.

4 out of 5 stars

Vast

By
aeromys
on
21-07-15

Consider Phlebas

Culture Series, Book 1

By:
Iain M. Banks

Narrated by:
Peter Kenny

Length: 16 hrs and 25 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,079

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,629

Story

4 out of 5 stars
1,631

The war raged across the galaxy. Billions had died, billions more were doomed. Moons, planets, the very stars themselves, faced destruction - cold-blooded, brutal, and worse, random. The Idirans fought for their Faith; the Culture for its moral right to exist. Principles were at stake. There could be no surrender. Within the cosmic conflict, an individual crusade....

4 out of 5 stars

A Truly Great Sci-Fi Novel

By
scotty
on
09-04-12

Steel World

Undying Mercenaries, Book 1

By:
B. V. Larson

Narrated by:
Mark Boyett

Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
800

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
749

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
747

In the twentieth century Earth sent probes, transmissions and welcoming messages to the stars. Unfortunately, someone noticed. The Galactics arrived with their battle fleet in 2052. Rather than being exterminated under a barrage of hell-burners, Earth joined their vast Empire. Swearing allegiance to our distant alien overlords wasn't the only requirement for survival. We also had to have something of value to trade, something that neighboring planets would pay their hard-earned credits to buy.

4 out of 5 stars

Read like the diaries of a soldier, but works well

By
Gary Sereno
on
09-06-15

Reamde

By:
Neal Stephenson

Narrated by:
Malcolm Hillgartner

Length: 38 hrs and 29 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,019

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
808

Story

4 out of 5 stars
814

Richard Forthrast created T’Rain, a multibillion-dollar, massively multiplayer online role-playing game. But T’Rain’s success has also made it a target. Hackers have struck gold by unleashing REAMDE, a virus that encrypts all of a player’s electronic files and holds them for ransom. They have also unwittingly triggered a deadly war beyond the boundaries of the game’s virtual universe - and Richard is at ground zero.

5 out of 5 stars

This virus really infected me!

By
Samuel
on
08-11-11

The Reality Dysfunction

By:
Peter F. Hamilton

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 41 hrs and 6 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
748

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
705

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
700

The Reality Dysfunction by Peter F. Hamilton is the first in Night's Dawn, a sweeping galactic trilogy from the master of space opera. In AD 2600 the human race is finally realizing its full potential. Hundreds of colonized planets across the galaxy host a multitude of wildly diverse cultures. Genetic engineering has pushed evolution far beyond nature's boundaries, defeating disease and producing extraordinary space-born creatures.

4 out of 5 stars

Great story spoiled by poor audio editing..

By
P Hardwick
on
18-11-16

Salvation

By:
Peter F. Hamilton

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 2 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
754

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
697

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
693

AD 2204. An alien shipwreck is discovered on a planet at the very limits of human expansion - so Security Director Feriton Kayne selects a team to investigate. The ship’s sinister cargo not only raises bewildering questions but could also foreshadow humanity’s extinction. It will be up to the team to bring back answers, and the consequences of this voyage will change everything. Back on Earth, we can now make deserts bloom and extend lifespans indefinitely, so humanity seems invulnerable. We therefore welcomed the Olyix to Earth when they contacted us. But were the Olyix a blessing or a curse?

3 out of 5 stars

I'm sorry John, I'm not keen on your rhythm :(

By
Neil S.
on
23-10-18

Ark Royal

By:
Christopher G. Nuttall

Narrated by:
Ralph Lister

Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
748

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
695

Story

4 out of 5 stars
695

Seventy years ago, the interstellar supercarrier
Ark Royal was the pride of the Royal Navy. But now, her weapons are outdated and her solid-state armour nothing more than a burden on her colossal hull. She floats in permanent orbit near Earth, a dumping ground for the officers and crew the Royal Navy wishes to keep out of the public eye. But when a deadly alien threat appears, the modern starships built by humanity are no match for the powerful alien weapons.

3 out of 5 stars

A reasanbly good yarn, not very well read

By
George
on
27-07-14

14

By:
Peter Clines

Narrated by:
Ray Porter

Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,521

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,390

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,385

There are some odd things about Nate’s new apartment. Of course, he has other things on his mind. He hates his job. He has no money in the bank. No girlfriend. No plans for the future. So while his new home isn’t perfect, it’s livable. The rent is low, the property managers are friendly, and the odd little mysteries don’t nag at him too much. At least, not until he meets Mandy, his neighbor across the hall, and notices something unusual about her apartment. And Xela’s apartment. And Tim’s. And Veek’s.

5 out of 5 stars

A good one!

By
Robyn
on
23-11-16

The Warship

By:
Neal Asher

Length: 18 hrs

Unabridged

Overall

0 out of 5 stars
0

Performance

0 out of 5 stars
0

Story

0 out of 5 stars
0

Their nemesis lies in wait.... Orlandine has destroyed the alien Jain super-soldier by deploying an actual black hole. And now that same weapon hoovers up clouds of lethal Jain technology, swarming within the deadly accretion disc’s event horizon. All seems just as she planned. Yet behind her back, forces incite rebellion on her home world, planning her assassination.

Children of Time

By:
Adrian Tchaikovsky

Narrated by:
Mel Hudson

Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,566

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,326

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,319

Adrian Tchaikovksy's critically acclaimed stand-alone novel
Children of Time is the epic story of humanity's battle for survival on a terraformed planet. Who will inherit this new Earth? The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age - a world terraformed and prepared for human life. But all is not right in this new Eden.

5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant

By
Damo
on
31-05-17

Terminal World

By:
Alastair Reynolds

Narrated by:
John Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 45 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
368

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
212

Story

4 out of 5 stars
211

Spearpoint, the last human city, is an atmosphere-piercing spire of vast size. Clinging to its skin are the zones, a series of semi-autonomous city-states, each of which enjoys a different---and rigidly enforced---level of technology. Following an infiltration mission that went tragically wrong, Quillon has been living incognito, working as a pathologist in the district morgue.

5 out of 5 stars

Science fiction with a very big point

By
Nigel
on
31-03-11

Summary

Nine hundred thousand years ago, something annihilated the Amarantin civilization just as it was on the verge of discovering space flight. Now one scientist, Dan Sylveste, will stop at nothing to solve the Amarantin riddle before ancient history repeats itself.

With no other resources at his disposal, Sylveste forges a dangerous alliance with the cyborg crew of the starship Nostalgia for Infinity. But as he closes in on the secret, a killer closes in on him because the Amarantin were destroyed for a reason. And if that reason is uncovered, the universe - and reality itself - could be irrevocably altered.

Critic reviews

"One of the best books of the year." (
Science Fiction Chronicle)
"Ferociously intelligent and imbued with a chilling logic - it may really be like this
Out There." (Stephen Baxter, co-author of
The Light of Other Days)

Story

Good story - Fell out with the narrator.

This is the first Alastair Reynolds book I have read and it grew on me. The first third is a little confusing; the main cause of which I think is the narrator's style. I have greatly enjoyed John Lee's narration in other books but on this occasion I felt it left quite a lot to be desired. It sounded like he had spend a lot of time perfecting some sort of Eastern European accent and then, when he had got it just right, he applied it to all the characters! Therefore, at times, I had no idea who was speaking. Once you get a feel for the plot and who everyone is, the 'audio-homogeneity' is not really a big issue, but it did take me a while longer than usual to settle into this book.

On the whole I found it enjoyable, with a good story and some great sci-fi moments, although it did not inspire me to read any sequels for a while, especially as I have read numerous reviews of the opinion that this book is the best of the bunch.

Narration difficult to follow

I could not get into this book, the narrator - normally brilliant - was my biggest issue. I could not follow the separation in plot lines. The narration jumped from one to the other without any pause, introduction or announcement, maybe a small thing, but it was enough for me

Buy a hard copy instead !!!

The narration - truly awful. SO bad I couldn't manage to finish the book.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Don't really know as could not finish it due to the monotonous intonation of the narrator. The first audiobook I haven't managed to finish :-(

What didn’t you like about John Lee’s performance?

Very flat performance with a monotone intonation with no variation in pitch or speed. It really ruined the part of the book that I actually could face listening to. I managed about an hour before it got so bad I gave up and listened to something else.

Was Revelation Space worth the listening time?

I only managed an hour before giving up - can't really comment on the story but it sounded like an interesting premise.

Any additional comments?

The first time have ever felt the need to write a review and I am doing so just to warn people to buy the paper version of the book and read it for yourself as the flat narration sucks all the joy from the story. Take heed reader - the narration alone makes this a true waste of a credit - you have been warned !!!

Good book, terrible reader

Revelation space is one of many books I've read in dead tree format, and have revisited in audiobook form. Usually it's a very rewarding experience, and I loved this book when I read it so had high hopes for the more immersive medium of audio.

However this is the second Alastair Reynolds book I've listened to, and I just can't face any more of them as John Lee's narration ruins them. His pacing... is... terrible.

That's only the second time in years of audible membership a narrator has spoiled the experience, but a bitterly disappointing one as I was looking forwards to making my way through Reynold's back catalogue.

Really worth a try

It is amazing how opinions differ. I thought this was excellent and I went on to enjoy all his books in written form. You should definitely try one as you have a whole oeuvre to look forward to if you enjoy it.
I would point out that I think Ricky Gervais is a very dull comedian and that The Office is tedious drivel so my tastes may not lie on the average!

Really excellent, narration is NOT as bad as the other reviews say

The book is really phenomenal. It's a good technical science fiction piece written by a PhD astrophysicist who worked for the European Space Agency. I can't wait to start listening to the next in the series.

Many of the reviews on here bemoan the narration, but let me expound on this. At first there are three different storylines with short passages of each jumping around quite artfully keeping you engaged in all three.

Unfortunately this audiobook is engineered with no indication of when it switches. I agree with many of the reviews that there needs to be a substantial pause like you have at the end of each chapter. When I was listening to this and trying to mark papers I was losing the string of events and it was confusing, but if I kept it to less mentally engaging tasks, like cooking or driving I could follow easily. Furthermore, once you are a couple hours in you get to know the names of the characters and it isn't really an issue, and by the last third of the book the storylines have coalesced. The narrator himself does a really excellent job with voices and acting. He is excellent in other audiobooks and he is excellent in this one. Furthermore, from the reviews I've read this spacing issue doesn't continue with the rest of the books in the series.

I highly recommend this book. It's a new favourite of the substantial number of science fiction titles I have consumed.

Good Book? Awful Narration!

I have never actually given up on an audio-book before and I have library with Audible.co.uk of over 200 unabridged titles. I have however, given up trying with this book though and the sad thing is, that it has nothing to do with the author!

After restarting the title over 5 times, I still have no idea what the story is about as I found the narration to be rambling and dull which resulted in me missing large amounts of the narrative as my attention wandered to just about anything else. John Lee's reading quite simply bored me beyond belief and I wish I had heeded the reviews written by John (in Hampshire) and Tim (in Ayrshire).

Perhaps the book would be great with a different reader (my vote would go to Peter Kenny who is brilliant in Iain M Banks' audio books), who knows?

John Lee was a terrific narrator in Ken Follett's books, but not in Revelation Space.

I certainly won't be buying the rest of the series.

PLEASE NOTE: THE STAR RATING I HAVE GIVEN THIS BOOK RELATES PURELY TO THE NARATION.

An excellent book let down by the reader

Alistair Reynolds creates a very compelling universe, with interesting characters, location and technology. The details he puts into the universe create a very immersive experience, which can be a little confusing at the beginning as we jump both in time and location between the characters of the story. But the story is well worth staying with as the story unfolds.

Then we come to the reader. Oh dear is the kindest way to put to it. I'm sure John Lee is a talented individual, but reading books aloud is not one of his talents. The voices he uses to depict different characters varies so faintly that it's nigh on impossible to tell when one character stops speaking and another responds. Then his normal reading voice suffer from the same problem, often its hard to tell when the narration has topped, and someone is speaking again. This one experience with John Lee has put me off buying anymore books read by him, as I want to concentrate on the plot, not figuring out which character is speaking or whether its actually narration.

So my conclusion is that this an excellent book with enjoyable plot, characters and settings, quite spectacularly let down by the reader.

Start of a fantastic tale..

I love this book, just finished it and getting ready to download the sequels (and prequels) set in the same universe. The Narrator is fantastic and I have listened to a lot that he has done, great job done on the narration here and elsehwere by the narrator, who I find very easy to listen to.... I found the following on the Authors website which I think it is worth sharing as the chronology of the publishing dates does not follow the chronology of the story - I really want to pick up where this one leaves me..... so from the Authors website.......... "Of my books to date, five are set in the same universe. The reading order isn't that critical, in my view, but it probably improves things to read REVELATION SPACE, REDEMPTION ARK and ABSOLUTION GAP in that sequence. The other related books, CHASM CITY and THE PREFECT, as well as the collections DIAMOND DOGS, TURQUOISE DAYS and GALACTIC NORTH, can be read at any point (or in fact, not read at all)."

I hope that someone else finds that info from Alastair Reynolds as useful as I have done - if you like Sci Fi, this series is for you... Aliens, Ancient Relics, super weapons, super humas, Ai, cyborgs, vast time scales, vast distances, vast wars, mystery, plot twists, great characters.......this has all that and some :) happy listener.

Confusing audio, maybe better as a written work

This is the first audiobook I've actually given up on. A shame really, I quite like Alastair Reynolds' work and despite the thoroughly unlikable characters, there are some interesting ideas in the story.

The French and mid-European sounding accents are somewhat similar so it can be hard to work out who is speaking (at first).

The plot jumps around a bit (in time and locations) - because there are very few cues in the audio that the narrative has moved to another planet (and the voices sounds similar) - I had to work hard just to keep track of what was going on. Even slightly longer pauses in the narration between planets/times would have helped me spot that that the story had moved elsewhere.

9 of 11 people found this review helpful

Sort by:

Overall

4 out of 5 stars

cmthomas

03-02-10

Challenging noir space opera bursting with ideas

Revelation Space has three main characters one of Russian decent, one of French and one Indian, with many Japanese characters figuring prominently, and the narrator portrays each one with the appropriate accent. The perspective of the novel shifts between these characters liberally within each chapter. Further, future tech flies fast and furious with explanations dispersed (sometimes) over several chapters. Taken together these factors make for a challenging read, but the fast-paced intricate and mind-bending ride is incredibly rewarding. The Revelation Space universe is proof that Reynolds' space operas are equal to the likes of M. John Harrison's or Iain M. Banks'.

32 of 32 people found this review helpful

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Performance

2 out of 5 stars

Story

4 out of 5 stars

Eoin

15-07-12

Defeated

This book defeated me, I am ashamed to say. I do most of my audio listening whilst driving, but this requires you too pay too much attention, and thus, while driving you lose important plot points, for two reasons:

1) There is a lot of tech within the book, and diluted time due to near-light speed travel on ships, and there is a lot of scene-shifting within chapters, which leads me to...

2) Other reviewers have alluded to it already, but it was a bad move not to have some sort of pause or audio-cue when scene-shifting between chapters. What happens is that John Lee (whose other stuff is ok, in my opinion), moves between scenes without taking a breath and you completely lose where you are whilst driving.

Shame I have to give it up, it's supposed to be a classic series. But them's the breaks.

180 of 188 people found this review helpful

Overall

2 out of 5 stars

Performance

1 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

Gillette

27-02-10

Frustrations with narrator and editing

The book so far is very good. However, the combination of the narrating and one particular editing decision has turned me off of the audio version. So far I have only been unable to finish one audiobook I've purchased from Audible.com (out of about 150) and I may now have to change that number to two.

The Narrator: John Lee has never been my favorite, but I've had him read four other books in my collection, and he did fine. On this one, the voices for the characters are goofy even more often than in the narration of Peter F Hamilton's "Pandora's Star" and "Judas Unchained". In many scenes, there's just not enough vocal differentiation between characters to follow the scene clearly.

The biggest problem: Some "genius" editor decided that there would be NO pause, NONE at all, when the book changes scenes. Since there are multiple plot threads and not quite enough vocal variety between some characters, and the scene changes rather frequently, this editing decision is really disruptive to the listening experience. I was so confused about which characters were where and doing what that I had to start over after getting about five hours in, and it was only the second time through that I began to recognize that there were even scene changes!! There's less of a pause between scene changes than pauses between the end of one sentence and the beginning of another. Nerd that I am I timed it! If the aforementioned genius editor hadn't decided to cut 5 minutes from the total length of the book in this manner, I might have bought the other four books from Audible. No chance now, unless some reviewer of the other books can tell me whether there are pauses at scene changes.

131 of 140 people found this review helpful

Overall

1 out of 5 stars

Performance

1 out of 5 stars

Story

1 out of 5 stars

Carrie Turner

19-04-14

Terrible audio book. I do not blame the author.

What disappointed you about Revelation Space?

The editor and the narrator were HORRIBLE. I have heard this is a really good book but I will never be able to finish because of this crappy performance.

There is absolutely no indication that the narration has moved from one character story arc to another. It is very confusing. At one moment you are following along, the next you have no clue what is going on. Then you realize you have moved to a separate story arch. There isn't even a pause in the narration. You could believe they are in the same sentence when they have crossed chapters.

Unfortunately due to eye issues I won't be able to read this book. I have heard it is a good book from people who have read it.

Has Revelation Space turned you off from other books in this genre?

I LOVE this genre

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of John Lee?

ANYONE. He is the only narrator that I refuse to listen to again. (I have 150 audible books and maybe 50 more audio books not through audible). He ruined A Feast of Crows by George R R Martin so bad they sent it back and had Roy Dotrice re-narrate it. Unfortunately I listened to the John Lee version. At least I can go back and listen to the remake with Roy Dotrice who is an excellent narrator.

10 of 10 people found this review helpful

Overall

4 out of 5 stars

Performance

4 out of 5 stars

Story

4 out of 5 stars

Jefferson

13-12-12

Sometimes Corny, Often Awesome, Modern Space Opera

In the year 2551 as Revelation Space (2000) begins, Dan Sylveste, the 215-year-old, famous science family scion, colony leader, and archeologist, is pushing his team to excavate an obelisk made by the extinct Amarantin, despite the approach of a terrible "razorstorm," because he wants to learn why "the Event" (apparently a stellar flare) suddenly ended the alien civilization some 900,000 years earlier on the planet Resurgam. Meanwhile (in 2543), the small "Ultranaut" crew of Nostalgia for Infinity, a city-sized, ancient and decaying "lighthugger" starship, including Ilia Volyova, the only crew member currently awake, is on its way to Sylveste to make him cure their captain of the Melding Plague (which merges human cells and machine nanotechnology into cancerous hybrid shapes). Meanwhile again (in 2524), Ana Khouri is a successful assassin hired by the idol rich of Chasm City on planet Yellowstone to relieve them from ennui, when the mysterious Mademoiselle has her infiltrate the crew of Nostalgia for Infinity as their new Gunnery Officer to communicate with the starship's apocalyptic weapons) so that she may hitch a ride to Resurgam and assassinate Sylveste.

Reynolds interweaves the three story lines as he brings Sylveste, Volyova, and Khouri ever closer together in time and space. The three point of view characters might at first seem to be unsympathetic: an arrogant and obsessive scientist, a shanghaiing and loner starship weapons expert, and a coolly efficient assassin. Yet Reynolds forces us to care for them in their various difficult situations by gradually revealing the humanity lurking inside them.

Reynolds' imagination is impressive: he conjures up numerous scientific developments, technological devices, alien species, galactic histories, and cultural extrapolations, ranging from the cool to the sublime. And he's good at evoking creepy and fascinating phenomena, like the malevolent Sun Stealer, the vast starship Nostalgia for Infinity, the fate of the alien Amarantin, and the "world" Cerberus orbiting a "neutron star."

John Lee does his usual efficient job reading the novel. Although his handling of Reynolds' dialogue may rub some listeners the wrong way (like his snide intonations in French, Russian, or Japanese accents), I mostly enjoyed his style and base narration and feeling for the story and characters, and was horripilated by his channeling of the creepy Sun stealer.

There are occasional corny lines in the novel like this exchange: Khouri: "I'm not sure I like this." Volyova: "Join the club." And sometimes I suspect that Reynolds could have told his story with less dialogue. And I'm still trying to decide whether the climax and resolution of the novel are satisfyingly transcendent or disappointingly explanatory. And I think his House of Suns is a better book. But there are plenty of neat descriptions in this book, like, "Volyova was silent until they reached the human nebula that was the Captain. Glittering and uncomfortably muscoid, he less resembled a human being than an angel which had dropped from the sky onto a hard, splattering surface." And plenty of memorably sublime or horrible scenes that make Revelation Space worth listening to for fans of the dark and sublime space opera of the likes of Iain Banks.

17 of 18 people found this review helpful

Overall

4 out of 5 stars

Mauricio

19-08-10

A challenge that's worth the investment

A great read. As another reviewer said, this is very much in the style of Peter F. Hamilton's books. Epic and complex. I started getting frustrated at the beginning since things don't seem to make sense, but if you stick with it then everything falls into place.
I wish a knew what some of the tougher scientific concepts mean because there's some stuff here that is beyond my understanding but in a way that made it even more interesting.

I love John Lee's narration and characterization in the book, although I do agree that the cuts between scenes are so short that you get confused when things end and start. Other than that I look forward to the next book which I'm downloading as I write this.

33 of 36 people found this review helpful

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Lowroad

14-03-09

Mixed review

This book is about one person's quest to find what disaster befell an ancient civilization and how it is relevant to the human race. The story describes this future world quite well, with some imaginative technologies and situations. It all seems very possible that such a future could come about - some of it at least. The reader, as usual, is very good.

The problem I had with this book is that there is not a clear protagonist. The main character is not such a likeable guy and you don't get to know him well enough to understand his motivations for this life long search, hence it seems a little contrived. The other characters are ambiguous as well. It is not that I want all the characters to be one dimensionally good or bad, but you do want to identify yourself with them and that did not happen for me.

Then a lot of the explanations of why/what happened are given near the end of the book. One person or another just fills in the blanks by recounting some of the salient facts. This never works well in a book of fiction. It is much more interesting to let a character experience something, instead of a documentary style of offering up just facts. I found myself scrambling to put it all together; too many facts all at once (of course an audio book does not help here, since it is hard to re-read a sentence or passage).

The end was a little disappointing too.

All in all though, it is still a story worth listening too; but it could have been made a lot better with some good editing and sharper characterizations.

62 of 70 people found this review helpful

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Performance

3 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

Tango

08-10-13

A worthwhile slog through fog

I have two pieces of advice for anyone considering this audio book:

1. Don't start Alistair Reynolds with Revelation Space. My first Reynolds was House of Suns and I think that's a great one to start with although I haven't yet read all of his work. If I had started with Revelation Space, I don't think I would have finished this book much less read any of his other work and THAT would be a shame.2. Find a good plot summary before you start listening to this book. This is one that would be tough to follow in print and even tougher on audio. A good plot summary helps tremendously. I would write one, but fortunately, Jefferson has included a good one in his review so I'd point you there. (Thanks, Jefferson.) There are some others on the internet if you are looking for more.

Revelation Space was my third Alistair Reynolds novel and it was challenging! However, having read Pushing Ice and House of Suns, I knew I wanted to read most if not all of Reynolds work because I really like his writing. And, Revelation Space is the introduction to Reynolds "signature" universe so I knew I needed the introduction even if it was hard.

Listening to this book felt a lot like trying to put together a 10,000 piece jigsaw with no picture or border pieces to work with. The first two thirds of the book are totally DENSE with descriptions and concepts and it doesn't seem to quite fit together. The pieces of the plot I could understand were intriguing, but it felt like much of it was just going past me. And, it doesn't help that these are not the best Reynolds characters. All the characters are interesting in a way that unusual things are interesting, but not sympathetic because you can't quite understand their motivations or their goals. They aren't really good or evil - most of them just seem rather duplicitous (lots of hidden agendas here) and amoral so there is really no one to root for/against through most of the book. I will admit that by the end, I was really rooting for Volyova; she is clever, thinks on her feet, and by her standards she's loyal. One of the things I've come to appreciate about Reynolds is that he writes some very good female characters. Although John Lee provides distinct character voices with the narration, it is not as much help as it might be because he uses so many thick accents that it is actually hard to understand some of the dialog.

If you feel like you are wading through a swamp in dense fog through much of this book, you wouldn't be alone, but it is worth the effort to stick with it. In the final third of the book, it's like Reynolds finally steps in and takes control; he hands you the border pieces and gives you the completed picture to work from and suddenly all the pretty, but meaningless pieces start to snap together in this amazing puzzle and it's quite a stunning picture. You really don't understand much of the plot or the characters or the universe until the final third of the book, but when it culminates, it makes for a grand conclusion.

Not the best Reynolds novel, but worthwhile if you are up to the slog through the initial fog.

31 of 35 people found this review helpful

Overall

2 out of 5 stars

Performance

1 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

Amazon Reviewer

28-02-16

Narrator makes a mediocre book bad

What would have made Revelation Space better?

I generally like Alastair Reynolds, but there is zero character development in this book. I could care less about any of them.

Would you recommend Revelation Space to your friends? Why or why not?

No. Weak book and a worse audiobook. Drags on, repeats itself, broken sequencing just for the sake of it.

How could the performance have been better?

The reader is too quiet too much of the time. I listen in the car and had to constantly adjust the volume because he moves from mumbling to speaking normally every other sentence. His natural speaking voice isn't bad...but every accent he has sounds like a soft-spoken vampire being forced to speak in a French accent at gunpoint.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Laura

02-04-09

Enjoyed this book

This book exceeded my expectations. When I picked this audiobook, I was looking for a science fiction novel leaning more towards hard science fiction and less Star Trek (though I do like Star Trek). I thought it might be somewhat dry with details but it wasn't. I want more... :)

For someone looking for a science fiction novel that combines a good amount of detail scientific (lots of detail in some areas) with futuristic fantasy and suspense, this is a good audiobook to get. The audience of this book should be mature as the book is graphic and dark in some areas but nothing too extreme, would make a good R rated movie as it has lots of oportunity for great space scenes and CGI.

The author does a good job of revealing just enough details and forshadowing to keep up the suspense without being predictable, puts you on the edge of your seat. The story is very emmersive and I look forward to continuing on in the world with Revelation Ark.

28 of 32 people found this review helpful

*Offer available from 22nd May 2019 10:00 GMT until 28th May 2019 at 11:59PM GMT. This offer is not available to existing Audible members. Offer applies only to an Audible monthly membership sold by audible.co.uk (http://audible.co.uk/). For the first 4 months of your Audible membership, you will be charged the discounted price of £3.99/month. After the first 4 months, your Audible membership will continue at the then current full price (currently £7.99/month.) until cancelled. Cancel anytime by visiting the Account Details page. Offer limited to one per customer and account, may not be combined with other offers, is non-transferable and may not be resold. Audible reserves the right to modify or cancel the offer at any time. If you violate any of these terms, the offer will be invalid.